Prince on repeat. This Women’s Month, we’re celebrating women every weeknight over on our Instagram page with our friends over at Cat Call. And right here? We’re continuing to celebrate our favorite new music, with a whole new lineup for March. Check out our playlist below, updated at least weekly throughout the month of March. Re-visit all month for new additions, and be sure to keep your eyes peeled for SXSW coverage!
Have you ever been seeking out answers in a world that seems confusing and unreal? No? 2020 just happened to us? (We kid!) But, for real, soulful artist Gaidaa takes a pretty vulnerable look at life in the video for her latest single “Stranger,” which just debuted with The Fader. While the song’s lyrics highlight the fact that there is always an amount of uncertainty that comes with growth, the instrumentals provide a relaxing element to allow you to almost sink into the sound like a comfortable, plush, worn-in sofa. Gorgeous, vibrant colors light up an art studio/office setting, making the dim lighting almost a source of inspiration for the artist while the camera pans the room continuously.
We’re big fans of the song and its accompanying video. What do you think?
Director: Segraphy
Written: Segraphy & Gaidaa
AD: Johan Verhoeven
Production company: Pierette Goossens
Producer: Pierette Goossens
Production assistent: Luuk van de Ven
Edit/Grading: Johan Verhoeven
DOP: Johan Verhoeven
Gaffer: Quintijn Maas
Welp, indie (dream) pop duo Eighty Ninety just released such a gorgeous track heading into Valentine’s Day weekend. We apologize for not sharing before the holiday, but there’s only so much time in a day. BUT WOW.
You know those moments when you consider different outcomes to your life? Contemplating your puppy love, celebrating your forever love, reminiscing on old love. Well, “Forever” is one of those moments. “Forever is about reconciling the desire to be with the person you love with the understanding that they don’t feel the same way anymore,” admits the duo. “It’s like a daydream in a song — what if we were in love again?”
Vocals smooth like butter (as always), gorgeous lyrics, and a rhythm that is easy to move to make this song just like a sugary dream. What a beautiful dichotomy and a wonderful song to deep breathe to.
It is with great pleasure that we wait with bated breath for Kansas City’s own Amy Farrand and The Like to play the official record release show for their debut album One this Saturday, April 28th. The band – adequately self-described as genre-defiant – is comprised of a group of incredible musicians, including, of course, esteemed songwriter and multi-instrumentalist (and band namesake) Amy Farrand, who has been working on this musical project since 2015. Having entertained at some incredible local events – including, but certainly not limited to, Kansas City’s Middle of The Map Fest and Apocalypse Meow – the sextet is amped to let their work reach more ears, and to continue with their incredibly endearing live performance tactics with the new tracks.
One was recorded at Weights and Measures Lab with Duane Trower and is an eleven track stunner you absolutely do not want to miss. If you haven’t heard it already, it was released recently, following the success of the single “Scared To Death of Dying”, which is the perfect jam track. A musical journey alongside Amy Farrand and The Like includes some incredibly soulful vocal vibes, accompanied by a robust-sounding horns section and high energy percussion that really bring everything to life and create some versatility to the tracks. While tracks like “White Girl Wasted” and “Scared to Death of Dying” actually address some common social commentary, the band is laser-focused on tracks like “Dragon Woman” and “Sweet Thing”, two of our absolute favorites from this collection.
Join Amy Farrand and The Likes in celebration of this honest and beautiful collection of songs on April 28th at 8pm at Davey’s Uptown Rambler’s Club (3402 Main Street, Kansas City, MO). Inviting the warm weather in with this crowd is going to be an absolute delight!
Just ahead of Acid Tongue‘s October full-length release Babies, the highly entertaining musical duo of Guy Keltner and Ian Cunningham – who are often joined by “friends” and operate out of New York, Los Angeles, and Seattle – has been busy, busy, busy. First premiering their track “If I Really Loved Her” via All Things Go, which boasted that “the band demonstrate both instrumental prowess and respect for their musical heritage as the sons of psychedelic forebears,” and they’re not wrong. These guys have got a handle on crooning, beautiful, psych sounds that could really drive the way you see your autumn if you choose to partake in some listening pleasure.
But we don’t just have the inside scoop on the album release. (Friday October 13th, mark your calendars.) We also have a little more insight on some of the tracks, their feelings on the music industry, and snacks in this quick (and fun) interview with Guy Keltner that happened in honor of their upcoming album release. Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-check it out!
What is the first song or album you ever remember hearing, and who introduced it to you?
Probably my mom playing Bob Marley or the Cranberries to us as kids. We had one of those old Technics sound systems with the tall boxy speaker cabinets. I’m sure we danced like goofy little kids to that stuff.
Was there a moment that it struck you and you realized you were going to pursue music, or did it kind of slowly evolve?
I used to think I was going to be an astronaut. I started playing piano at five, but I wasn’t exactly keen on scheduled lessons and the homework that came with it. I finally got a guitar when I was 11 and I think that’s when everything clicked. I mostly just banged on it for the first year or so, but my parents set me up with this great teacher, an old session musician from Seattle named Al Kaatz. He’s really into soul, classic R&B and reggae, and helped shape my taste and how I approach music to date.
And did you choose the “post-menopausal” life, or did it choose you? (Referencing their “genre” categorization on Facebook.)
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a awhile, you could miss it.
“If I Really Loved Her” has such a beautiful sentiment behind it. Can we expect more of the same emotion behind the rest of Babies?
The entire album is full of little easter eggs, relatable songs about daily life, but with a much deeper meaning to them. I’m not always just signing about the good stuff, either. There’s a lot of odes to life’s minutiae, thoughts on how mundane things can get. I don’t think people always want to hear about breakups and star-crossed lovers. There’s something beautiful about eating top ramen and being broke with your friends, talking about nothing and killing time.
“Talking In Your Sleep” struck our fancy with its title, and it’s one of our favorites off the release. Is this a love letter to a certain someone, or does it pull from many places?
This song is about charisma. The type of people who spin webs and can turn a boring story into something compelling. We all have friends or co-workers or family that do this.
“Accidental Drug Use” threw us for a loop, one of those “well, that escalated quickly” songs when it comes to lyrics. It’s amazing. How was this one to work on in studio?
That song was actually written the night Bowie died. I don’t usually get upset when one of these aging rockers passes away. They’ve lived epic lives, and lot of that generation is pretty old and has seen their best days already. Bowie’s new record was surprisingly great, though, and I felt this new excitement for his music after that. KEXP in Seattle did a Bowie day, a tribute to his tunes, right after that record dropped. A few days later, I’m hearing Bowie all day again and wondering “what the hell?”. When I heard he had passed, I was absolutely crushed and this song just spilled out.
Did you choose Friday the 13th as release date for any particular reason?
Sometimes things just work out that way.
Do either of you have a favorite song off of Babies, or is that feeling applied to the entire work, since it’s your first release?
I’m torn between “Humpty Dumpty” and “If I Really Loved Her”. Both of those fell into place so perfectly during the sessions, and they are such strange tunes in general. Ian is partial to “Accidental Drug Use” though. I really dig the way his drums turned out.
What has been your favorite memory together as a band so far?
We did a short run in the Northwest recently, opening for De La Soul, playing Upstream Festival in Seattle, and generally having a blast with our friends when we were home visiting. Our bassist, Alessio, is from Italy and lives in Paris now. It was his first time in that part of the country and it’s such a different vibe than the rest of the US. We started laying down the tracks for our next LP, the follow-up to Babies. Just a really perfect trip.
How do you imagine people listening to this album?
Everywhere. It’d be so cool to just have this be one of those LPs that synonymous with rock & roll during our era. One of those things you hear at dive bars, coffee shops, taxi cabs, wherever.
Guilty pleasure snack. Go!
Chopped cheese.
What is your opinion of the modern music industry?
It’s amazing that I have access to literally everything I could want to listen to in the palm of my hand. I’m a huge fan of Spotify and I think this is a cool era, we just have to slug it out and be persistent to make any money from our art.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Go out and buy/steal/stream Babies as soon as you can. The vinyl looks really cool, too.
___
Babies is out October 13th. Keep up with Acid Tongue here.
**This article was originally published on PlaylistPlay on October 5, 2017.
Former indie rocker, Neal Wright, highlights the Chinese board game, “Go”, in his most recent work. Being an avid player for most of his life, Wright honors the abstract strategy game under his project name, Wave Collector. The artist’s new single, The Masterpiece, tells the story of and pays homage to Dosaku’s masterpiece.
Upon meeting The Masterpiece, one is not greeted in a gradual manner. On the contrary, I suggest you prepare for an abrupt “hello”: a “hello” filled with immense variety, and one that will occupy your full attention.
Within the first 15 seconds, the audience is engulfed by electronic instrumentation, ethnic pulsations, ambient noises and vocal recordings. If this sounds like a lot, your assumptions are correct. This track will, quite literally, take hold of you and lead you through an experiential journey based on novel sounds; and it will not wait for you to give the go-ahead. As a listener, allow yourself to take a step back and let Wright take control.
As a rising voice in Portland, Oregon’s electronic music scene, Wave Collector is uncategorizable and is anything but ordinary. Forget about that 3:00 pm caffeine crash– in four minutes, Wright will have you feeling re-energized and ready to take on masterpieces of your own.
Today, Punxsutawny Phil told us we have 6 more weeks of winter. So, we had to put him at the helm of the piece. Because, you know, his shadow determines how cold we are. Right, east coast? (Who is in the ALWAYS COLD CLUB aside from me?) The Joan Baez lyrics that were chosen for the title of this piece kind of tell it like it is. We don’t mind, though. we’re just going to keep spinning brand new music and be as thrilled as possible with it.
Check out new songs throughout the month at the playlist below. Everything is new, everything is awesome. (Holy hell PLEASE listen to the playlist now, so that the last sentence isn’t stuck in your head all day like it is in mine?)
I remember driving old back roads in Indiana listening to these songs. I used to steal all these mixes from my older brothers friends, and I listened to them so much I remember where the skips used to be. These are songs that made up my youth. I hope they give you that old feeling I had of being invisible and lost in the best way.
A rush of sound, gentle vocals, a building composition that both blends together seamlessly and allows you to feel the impact of each layer singularly. Missoula-based indie rock group Arrowleaf carries their particular brand of gorgeous sound with Sarah Marker at the helm as the lead singer and songwriter. Their new track “HDYK” is out today, and we’ve got your official premiere.
Here’s the deal. Take away all of the band details, technical terminology, and extra fluff. Look at the photo of this band. This music is clearly inspired by their ecosystem, and the incredible landscape that surrounds them. It’s like they have found a way to close your eyes and FEEL Montana. Honestly? That perfect balance of grace and lightness with the endearingly rough guitar, captivating audio pivots, crashing cymbals, and bravado of a rock band suits that location immensely, with the beauty of the greenery framed by the grandness of the rock formations.
Try it on for size. (We’re right.)